Chiaroscuro
by Unconstructed Dream Space
Summary: Her name during her stay in Japan is Ryuuzaki Kotone, and the reason why she's here? To work for the Vongola Decimo, Sawada Tsunayoshi and his family. But the really scary part of it all? The miniscule information that goes along with the job description!


Title: Chiaroscuro

Prologue

Summary: Her name during her stay in Japan is Ryuuzaki Kotone, and the reason _why_ she's here? To work for the Vongola Decimo, Sawada Tsunayoshi and his family. But the really scary part of it all? The miniscule information that goes along with the job description!

Disclaimer: I do not own this series but I do, however, own my characters and... the plot?

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><p><em>So as one chapter closes, another begins…<em>

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><p>o-o<p>

**Sawada Residence**

**Namimori, Japan**

**Sunday, 12:01 pm**

_Countdown_**: 14 days**

o-o

"_I will prepare all the necessary requirements for her stay_," The receiver of the phone did not mask the exhaustion coming from the voice. One can even imagine the owner running his (yes, the voice belonged to a male, a father in fact) fingers through his hair. There was a ruffling of papers before the voice speaks again.

"_Is there anything else I should know about before sending my daughter to her doom?_"

All sarcasm aside, Reborn—the one who called the man so damn early in the morning—was supposed to be serious. Recruiting a member into the Vongola Famiglia, or any Famiglia in general, is not a matter to be taken lightly with, despite his reputation of having a frivolous nature. However, the corner of the hitman's mouth twitched upwards and humorless laughter bubbles out of him in spite of the importance of the situation.

"You act as if she's on a suicide mission."

"_Being in the mafia _is_ a suicide mission._" The voice spat contemptuously, the rustling grew louder. Reborn shrugged even though the one on the other side of the line wouldn't see the gesture. Instead of diving more into the ugly topic that is the underworld, he changed the subject for both of their sakes.

"How old is your daughter again?"

"_Fourteen._" A beat later,"_why?_"

Reborn broke protocol again and smiled, nodding to himself. The details were coming along quite nicely. "The same age as the tenth boss."

"_Hard to believe someone so young as to deal with this shit_."

Ah, the joys of talking to the younger generation of the mafia. Reborn chuckled at the snarkiness of his _friend_, the time difference must be getting to the young boss in Italy; it _was_ five in the morning over there.

"Funny, you made your daughter go through hell and back with _all_ that training, all for this _shit_."

An indignant snort filled Reborn's ear, very uncharacteristic of the usual stoic young man. "_Ha, ha._" He responded dryly, before adding,"_Compared to your training, mine is considered way more humane._"

"Well, with all things considered, I hope all that training pays off. We don't want it to go for naught, now do we?" Reborn was making light conversation now, what else to do when your bored? He heard a grunt in response, and wanting to push the young boss's buttons even further, asked: "So, what was your wife's reaction when she heard about this? Unless, you didn't tell her yet…"

"_Your joking, you need to bring me wife into this too!_"

The infant laughed, he was so similar to Tsuna, so easy to provoke.

"So, two weeks was it, until I see your daughter?"

"_Right_."

And that was that, the conversation would die here and it would be appropriate to end it. But out of nowhere, the tone of the conversation flipped on its back entirely, the voice that filled Reborn's ear sent alarms ringing in his head.

"_Will you promise me something, Signore Reborn?_"

An abnormally calm silence enveloped the both of them, save for the rustling of papers on the other end. Reborn pursed his lips and switched the phone to his other ear, bracing for the worse.

"What is it?"

"_Keep my daughter safe_."

o-o

**Location can not be disclosed**

**Somewhere in Italy**

**Friday, 1:14 pm**

_Countdown_**: 9 days**

o-o

There was faint music in the background of the training room, an odd mixture of jazz and pop music pulsed through the air rhythmically. In the middle of the room was a balance beam and on the very edge of this very beam stood a girl poised and ready. Her dark chocolate brown hair was pulled up in a tight but neat ponytail with an array of bobby pins holding her bangs and any other strands in place.

She exhaled a stream of air, her hands positioned above her head and her foot raised in front of her. Her eyes narrowed slightly, all she saw was the other end of the beam. Nothing else. Not even the fact that she was several (okay, more than several) centimeters in the air and if she slipped (no way that she would, balance was now second nature to her) she can easily break something. Nope, no sir, it was _definitely_ not crossing her mind. The brunette was absolutely focused on the path in front of her.

She pulled back slightly before throwing herself forward. After executing three simple saltos, she was at the other end of the beam. Her body tingled with instinct, each muscle movement memorized to the point that her mind drifted into the dangerous waters of daydreaming. The gymnast spun around, posed with her hands up behind her, ready to take flight.

A couple steps forward and she was flying again. Leapt so that both of her legs were horizontal—a split leap was what it was called—and leapt again. A simple full turn on one foot and she faced where she started, the rest of the beam behind her. She inhaled, lifting her arms above her again. Her heart drummed loudly drowning out any possible distractions. The beat of the music fell deaf on her ears.

She was ready.

The young gymnast pulled her arms forward, collecting the weight before finally snapping backwards. And this time, it was going to be different. This time, she kept her eyes opened. The world spun around her and she doesn't feel the beam as she skims over it with the palm of her hands. She was airborne now, twisting and in that single moment, she was weightless. The hair on her arms and the back of her neck stood on end and anxiety just fills her up like a bottle.

Was this exhilaration?

Unbeknownst to her, the corner of her lips quirks up and her anxiety morphs into excitement. She's doing it!

And her feet touched the beam before she can relish the moment.

_Shoot, shoot, shoot!_

Her right foot landed on the edge of the beam and she was going to slip!

_No, no, no!_

This was not going to happen! Not again!

Her arms shot out automatically and her body whipped to one side to correct her weight imbalance. She straightened up, adjusting her feet quickly. And she was poised again; her performance of a layout back salto with a full twist ended more or less in perfection.

She exhaled.

Then inhaled.

_Breathe_, she commanded. Her chest rises and falls in a dramatic fashion, a treacherous indicator that she had no control over her breathing yet. She wasn't done yet, she still needed to dismount but she was facing the wrong way to do so. Thus, the brunette holds her arms up, right next to her ears and throws herself again. She does not allow her hands to touch the beam; instead they are tucked inside her. Her legs were up in an instant but they landed within the second. She went forward again, performing an aerial cartwheel instead and she was finally at the end of the beam. She twirled around, gazing at the spot that she was going to land on.

The young gymnast hops forward, twisting her hands and shoulders as she touches the beam, combining it with a handspring before finally she was up in the air again. She tucks her arms to her chest and twists, twists with all her might because it was already ingrained into her mind.

And it was there again.

That feeling…the _weightlessness_…

She landed with a quiet squish of the mat her hands stylized above her. And she exhales again because it feels like she's been holding her breath far too much.

The gymnast whirls around to the sound of clapping, believing that she was alone in the training room. There a few meters away from her was her mother's—now hers—butler/caretaker/bodyguard, actually, he was pretty much everything, from a chef to a ninja. The elderly man was dressed in a butler attire, clapping his gloved hands. The sides of his eyes crinkled as he smiled at her and she couldn't help but smile back.

"Thank you, thank you," the brunette took several bows, her hand flourished above her.

"Bravo, ojo-sama," the young gymnast blinked momentarily, the language plate in her mind hurriedly switched it from Italian to Japanese. "That triple dismount is getting more and more beautiful, incredibly solid!"

Her heart was about ready to jump out of her throat as she laughed. She gladly accepted the towel and water bottle being handed to her.

"Thank you, Tanaka-san." She twisted the cap open and took a big swig of water. "How long were you standing there?"

"Long enough to see the whole routine."

She grimaced, pouring a little water on her towel before wiping her whole face. "What do you think of the layout back salto with a full twist?"

"I believe that if you practiced even more, it will be perfect, just like your triple twist dismount."

The gymnast nodded, knowing that Tanaka really had no idea what she was talking about earlier by the way he smiled politely, but had to ask, "Nothing out of place?"

"Well, I don't know if you can ask me since I'm not much of a gymnastics expert," she nodded in agreement, "but it looks more or less in place."

She nodded again, pursing her lips. She walked over to the bench and picked up the remote to the turn off the music before turning back around, tilting her head to the side.

"May I help you with something Tanaka-san?"

"Oh! Actually," he took out a white envelope from his inner breast pocket. "Antonio-sama wanted me to give this to you."

"Um," She took it gingerly, eyeing the menacing white envelope. Its lack of folds and creases overwhelms her just a little bit. "Thank you."

"And Emiko-sama wanted me to tell you that—"

The gymnast looked up to notice that Tanaka wasn't at the place she last saw him at, which was right in front of her. She glanced around when she finally spotted him already at the door, the only thing showing was his head.

"—you will be having a haircut tomorrow." He yelled before disappearing.

"Wait Tanaka-san—" her hand was out but the door closed with a small click, leaving the teenager all alone with the ominous white envelope. She gave the envelope a once over, getting the feeling that anything in it wasn't going to be good. She began opening it when the last part of what Tanaka said reached her. Alarmed, her hand shot up to her hair.

"I-I HAVE TO CUT MY HAIR?"

o-o

**Venice Marco Polo Airport **

**Venice, Italy**

**Wednesday, 6:04 am**

_Countdown_**: 4 days**

o-o

The brunette fingered the strands of hair forlornly while swiping at her new bangs as they kept poking her eyes. Ugh, how annoying! Having driven to Venice from her house in an ungodly hour in the morning, she was seriously thinking of taking Tanaka on his offer of coffee or something. She rubbed her face, a splitting headache forming. She needs caffeine.

"Antonio you better pick up your—" Her mother abruptly stopped pacing, her expression contorted into annoyance. "ANTONIO! You—no damn it, I got voicemail again!"

The girl groaned, pressing her fingers to her temples. Tune her out, tune her out. She closed her eyes, her mother began fading into the background as the brunette reviewed the information she recently learned about the Vongola Famiglia in the short span of five days.

Their Decimo is Sawada Tsunayoshi, age fourteen, presently living in Namimori, Japan. He is the son of the head of the CEDEF, Sawada Iemitsu. Currently, he is under the tutelage of the Vongola's most trusted man, Reborn, also the world's strongest hitman.

The rest of the Decimo's family are around her age, except for one—he's only five and he's already pulled into something so dangerous? What's wrong with the Decimo? Heck, was wrong with the family that let the poor boy join! She tried continuing but was interrupted by her mother's incessant yelling again.

"You just think you're _sooo_ smart for not picking up, I'll just call your bodyguards and—!"

"Is Emiko-sama still at it?" The younger girl nodded and glanced up at the sudden appearance of her caretaker for the flight. She was used to idea of Tanaka being ninja like and popping in and out of nowhere but it still got her heart jumping. He held a cardboard coffee holder and handed her a cup. She sniffed at the contents and nodded her thanks, she needed some hot chocolate. Caffeine is not good for a growing teenager.

Her mother decided that after three more unsuccessful calls, she sat down next to her daughter. As for the young girl herself, she was staring outside of the large, wall-windows of the airport. She was leaning forward, her elbows rested on her knees and her cheek lay on the palm of her hand. On the other hand was her drink being gently swished. Emiko placed a hand on her daughter's head, stroking the identical color locks.

"Is father more insane than usual, mother?" She muttered quietly. The response she got was unsuspected. A chop on the head. "Ow!"

"Believe me, if your father is, I'll make sure he regains his sanity! Then I'll make him lose it when he comes back! Geez, he always does this! Running away and—!"

"Mother, you're too loud!" The young girl clamped her hands over her ears; she was smiling though, in order to convince her mother that she didn't have to say anymore.

"Oh you!" Emiko ruffled her daughter's hair, earning a laugh. The laughter died right away when she faced the windows again. Her mother watched as the gymnast brought her legs up on the chair, wrapping her arms around her ankles as she leaned back on the chair.

"You seem so fixated on the sky," her mother said, following her daughter's gaze, "is there something special about it?"

The brunette looked back, putting her feet back on the ground and sitting up. She shrugged nonchalantly. "Nothing special, it just looks pretty, that's all."

"Hm, I don't know, looks pretty special to me," Emiko gathered her daughter into a hug, squeezing her extremely close. "It's so blue you don't even know where it starts or finishes. It's endless... like _love_." The young girl groaned.

"Please don't," Her mother laughed, resting her chin on her daughter's head.

"Well, alright then, what do you think about it?" She felt her daughter tilt her head to look at the window.

"I don't know, it's…hypnotizing, I guess." The brunette got out of her mother's entrapment and brought her legs up again and resting her arms on top of her knees, turning so that she fully faced the window now. She rested her head on her arms, hoping to see the sky in a different angle.

"And sure, it's blue and endless like you said, but it's also calming and it gives off this sort of feeling that…"

The sun was making its way up painting the clouds a whiter color while its underbelly still has its darkness to it. And her eyes were drawn to that particular spot. It was such a huge contrast.

Without warning, she brought her legs down and her hands were up in her hair. "Gah! I don't know! I don't know how to explain it!"

Her mother laughed, bringing the frustrated girl to her so that she could kiss her forehead. "It's alright, I understand, I understand! You really like the sky, don't you?"

The young gymnast twisted slightly, looking over her shoulder at the window again. She narrowed her eyes at the scene, a perplexed expression formed onto her face. She gave up in deciphering the reason why, too tired to think properly. "I guess."

Tanaka watched the exchange between mother and daughter with a wistful gaze, his eyes wandered over to the blocky roman numerals strapped to his wrist. Unfortunately, time flies by when you're not thinking about it. He sighed. Tanaka was getting to old for this. Another painful separation between mother and child and he's here to witness it again. He sighs once more. Just what has the world come to? He motioned towards Antonio's right hand man, Francesco, that it was time to depart. The blond man nodded, gesturing for the rest of the bodyguards, dressed so obviously it made Tanaka face palm, to surround them. Despite Antonio's orders to be as inconspicuous as possible, this was a failure.

"Emiko-sama," said person looked up reluctantly, her mouth set on a grim line and he could see the young girl he had to take care of many years ago, "it's time to go."

And as if one cue, "Flight J-508, from Venice, Italy to Tokyo, Japan, one stop, ready to board. Flight J-508, now boarding."

"Ow!" Emiko gave the young girl in her arms a bone crushing hug, rubbing her cheek against the brunette. "Mother, that hurts!"

"Wait until I get my hands on your father! I can't believe he's making me do this again!" She can hear the looming sound of an inevitable sob coming from her mother's voice and couldn't help looking away. Her brother's departure or settlement was more like it, flashed in her mind briefly. The brunette shook her head and gave her mother a hug as equally strong, the back of her eyes were stinging.

"Emiko-sama," Tanaka said quietly. Emiko pulled her daughter out to arms length, looking at her square in the eye.

"Don't you dare cry, don't give your father the satisfaction that this is affecting you!" Her mother said, wiping her daughter's still rather dry eyes.

"Shouldn't you be doing that?" She asked calmly, her eyebrow arched. The stinging in her eyes subsided because she wasn't as emotional as her mother is. Her mother was on the verge of tears and it was usually funny to watch her hold it back, because in the end, they always spill over. Emiko wiped her own eyes with the back of her hand but they were still watering.

"Now, quick review," Her mother said in French, confusing the teenager, "what is your name?" She switched the language again, this time to Japanese.

"Ko—Ryuuzaki Kotone." She answered, almost flipping the name around.

"Good, good," Her mother nodded and wiped her eyes again before looking at her daughter's honey gold eyes. Emiko can see her husband's eyes staring back at her and she nodded again, a determined and fiery look in her eyes. "I'm going to strangle your father's scrawny little neck!"

The brunette's shoulders jerked upwards, shocked.

xXx

A man in his late thirties choked on his coffee after only just receiving it. He coughed violently, earning a chain reaction of his bodyguards to surround him. One of the newer recruits, actually they were all pretty new, walked up to him with napkin.

"Signore Antonio, are you alright?" He lifted his hand out to silence the bodyguard. His other hand immediately went to his neck, stroking it uneasily

"Ugh, that's not a good feeling." Antonio muttered.

"Are you alright?" His bodyguard repeated.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He waved dismissively, loosening his tie a little. "Just…my wife."

Antonio ended simply, not really knowing how to explain it. His bodyguard nodded, placing a hand on his boss's shoulder in a sort of understanding way. Even though he was still new, he had the pleasure of knowing his boss's wife's anger.

"I understand, Signore."

xXx

The brunette shook her head as her mother continued to make strangling motions to no one in particular. Kotone picked up her bag, taking in the smell of her dear Italia one last time. Tanaka gestured for the bag but she shook her head, throwing the strap over her shoulder. She said another fond goodbye to the men who surrounded them so noticeably. They were supposed to be with her father while he's on a business trip but they're here for some reason, probably on her father's orders, giving her spine crushing hugs, making her laugh one last time as they revealed their tears.

"We'll miss you!"

"Don't let any of those boys take advantage of you!"

"What kind of goodbye message is that?"

"Remember what I taught you about the crotch, kick it right there if anyone—"

"Hey! I thought I told you to stop teaching her inappropriate things! Seriously, you guys can't say a proper goodbye!"

Kotone laughed, it couldn't hurt, right? She won't see them for a while…she won't be able to see _anyone_ in a while. So she gave them all one last hug and walked alongside Tanaka towards the gates.

"Have a safe trip!"

The brunette looked over her shoulder. Her mother was surrounded by her father's men, all of them waved embarrassingly large with their arms. All of them a little teary eyed and drawing unnecessary attention. She forced herself to smile. So she did so reassuringly at them and raised her hand. She didn't wave as extreme as they did, but she waved nonetheless.

She took one last glance at the airport as a whole and nodded with a sort of finality.

Goodbye Italy, hello Japan.

o-o

**Tokyo International Airport**

**Tokyo, Japan:**

**Thursday, 1: 38 am**

_Countdown_**: 3 days**

o-o

She was exhausted.

And she was seriously considering on tipping the old fat hag in the front of the line, break the window and toss her off of it. She was going to do it. _And_ she was going to laugh as the old _freaking_ hag plummets to her death on the cold cement ground below. Bonus points if she lands on the luggage carriers where she'll be shipped off to another country and everyone will freak out and oh how Kotone would enjoy seeing their horrified faces.

_Oh yeah_, she was going to do it.

But Tanaka has a knack for reading her mind and placed a firm hand on her shoulder, noticing the twitch of her legs before she realized she was going to stand up. He gazed down with a grandfather-like disapproval at her from the corner of his eyes.

"We're almost there, please be a little more patient." He said in a most calming manner, but that didn't stop her from thinking of other ways to get back at the fat hag. What were they arguing about anyway?

Kotone drummed her fingers above her upper lip as she waited in agony for the line to _just _move, glaring at the back of someone's head so much that the guy started sweating. She was positioned on top of her luggage, her foot tapping simultaneously with her fingers.

Now, the brunette wasn't like this normally, but the combination of her father telling her in a _stupid_ letter that she had to go to Japan and without any _further_ information about _why_ she had to go other then, and she quotes, _make an alliance with the Vongola Famiglia_, a whole week of boot camp learning about said family (as if she wants more to do with the mafia), and her recent hair cut.

She fingered the brown strands again, they were pretty much everywhere. Her mother said that _everyone_ in Japan has layered hair and that if she wanted to 'blend in', she has to have her hair stylized like this. The hat she wore flattened her now oddly voluminous hair and she felt the need to pull the rim further down. Her golden eyes slid to the side, watching the other line as they moved forward so easily. There was a girl who looks about the same age as her sitting in a similar fashion on top of her luggage. She was putting make up on and the girl suddenly made eye contact with her and lifted an eyebrow at her. Kotone immediately tilted her head to her own line, glad that her hat was big enough to create a big shadow over her eyes. She rolled her eyes and her mouth twitched, ready to say something. The brunette wrinkled her nose with disdain when she saw the smirk on that girl's lips. Sure, go make yourself look like a clown for all she cares.

She touched her hair unconsciously, Kotone was not vain, she could care less about how she looked (but since she lived, or used to live in, Italy, _everything_ was about first impressions so she _has_ to keep her appearance in check so as to not bring shame to her family).

The brunette gritted her teeth, standing up again but was forced to sit down on her luggage by a firm hand once more. She could have easily avoided all of this annoying crap if she had just asked to use the private jet, but…Kotone blew at her bangs, she doesn't approve of extravagant gestures, plus her mother said she had to lay low when coming into the country.

She finally exhaled, sighed actually. Her mental ranting got her to cool down (sort of) and her posture loosened greatly from her stiff position. She rolled her shoulders around while keeping her arms crossed. Kotone began mentally reviewing again, she needed a good distraction or else she'll lose her mind thinking about things that shouldn't even cross her mind at the moment.

Her name is Kotone Ryuuzaki. She frowned, shaking her head, no, it was Ryuuzaki Kotone. It had to be in reverse order. Kotone sighed, it had been too long since she had last visited Japan and now here she was, on some business transaction.

Within the five day period between the time she got word of her travel plans and going to the airport, she was quickly briefed about the Vongola Famiglia. Kotone was also informed on how her 'job' or 'task' or whatever it was called, was going to play out. Go to Japan, do interview, and if she was successful, wait until the next set of instructions.

What was she, a secret agent?

They finally, _finally_, got passed baggage clearance. As she walked by the waiting area, Kotone gave the hag who was holding up the line earlier a cold look over her shoulder. There was something about the color of her eyes that gave off a menacing aura of some sort, at least that's what Francesco kept telling her, just like her father. So she's going to put it to good use.

Satisfied, the brunette watched as the old hag picked up her things and scurried off with her stupid over decorated purse and matching bag. Kotone lifted her chin a little higher, _good riddance_. She caught the amused look coming from Tanaka when she glanced up at his profile.

They went out another way then the usual exit for immigrants, a rather deserted place considering the car filled lanes and crowded sidewalks they left behind. There was a black car waiting for the two of them out in the courtyard with several men in black encircling the area. Kotone was nudged behind Tanaka and she followed the silent order to get back. She switched her bag to her other shoulder as she watched one of the men, the smallest in built, but still quite athletic, come up to Tanaka. They spoke in a different language, Russian perhaps, since that was one of the few languages Tanaka said he could speak fluently. The man Tanaka was talking to had an unusual shade of red as his hair color and it boggled her mind for moment until Tanaka called out to her.

The red haired man removed his sunglasses (was this mandatory to wear if your apart of a security system or something?) and saluted. He had a playful smile on his face, not at all like the men who were keeping watch.

"Why hello Kotone-ojo-sama, you've grown so much since I last saw you!"

The brunette nodded politely. He did not, at all, look familiar. He laughed, surprising her when he reached over and messed with her hat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tanaka shake his head.

"It's alright if you don't remember me, you were _this_ tiny when you last came to visit." He made a point by bringing his hand near his knee. He looked… rather young now that she got a closer look at him. His hand made a sweeping motion to the black car behind him to which one of the men opened the passenger door.

"Your chariot awaits."

Kotone raised an eyebrow at Tanaka but all he did was shake his head again, nudging her forward. Once they entered the car, she noticed the red haired man take the front seat.

"You should rest ojo-sama, you may take a nap on my shoulder if you like." Kotone nodded absent-mindedly, leaning her head towards Tanaka.

"Do I really know him?" She directed her chin to the man in the front seat. Tanaka had a rather tired look about him.

"Matsuda Ichiro, and yes you do know him. Actually, he's my grandson." Kotone's eyes widened. Tanaka had a thoughtful twinkle in his eyes. "You don't remember? Well, I don't blame you, you've only met him a couple of times when you were still in your toddler years. He dropped you when you were about four, that's how you got that scar on your forearm." Tanaka pointed to her right arm and she poked the light mark.

"Hey, I was twelve! She kept fidgeting around!" The man in the front seat defended.

"That is no excuse, Ichiro, for dropping the young mistress!"

Kotone covered the smile that appeared on her mouth. It was weird to see Tanaka show any sort of emotion other than patience…and yeah, patience.

"How old is he?" She rubbed her eyes, yawning.

"About seven or eight years older than you, not as mature though, considering his personality."

"Hey! That was uncalled for ojii-chan!"

She chuckled, taking off her hat. Kotone stared out the window, the scenery blurred past her. The brunette scrunched her eyebrows together in order to keep awake.

"Ojo-sama, please rest, you stayed up all throughout the plane ride. You're eyes are tired." She frowned, giving Tanaka a pointed look before putting her arm up so she could rest on it. Kotone closed her eyes for a split second before jerking awake, almost hitting her head on the car roof.

"We're here."

Kotone shook her head to get rid of the remaining sleep she still had in her and followed Tanaka out the car. She looks up at the building in awe, she's really never been outside of her home in Italy or outside of her grandparents' house either.

"Um, Tanaka-san," She ran up the stairs to catch up with the elderly man, "what's this building called?"

"Hm?" But the Tanaka was already at the counter, talking with the owner before she could ask again.

"It's called an apartment complex."

Kotone looked up at the sudden appearance of the red haired man. Matsuda Ichiro was his name, right? She narrowed her eyes at him, the last she saw him was at the trunk getting her stuff out. Though, he didn't have the stealth like his grandfather to surprise her too much. Did it run in the family or something? Ninja genes or some sort of ninja clan secret? He looked down, a good head taller than her, and smiled.

"Did I scare you?"

Kotone smirked and looked back at Tanaka. "Not even close, you still have a lot more to practice."

"Heeeeeh, really?" He drawled.

She went to sit down in the lobby's bench, the red haired man following her. He stood near her and crossed his arms. Kotone looked up at him and saw the back of his head were standing up on ends and concluded that he must have fallen asleep in the car as well. Tanaka finished, walking back to the two as he waved the key in his gloved hands.

"Let's go check out your new home, hm?"

They took the elevator, the two men stood on either side of her. Kotone grimaced on how much taller they were than her, feeling a lot smaller than she should. The brunette eyed the graying hair of Tanaka's head then switched to Matsuda's red haired locks. They were talking rather animatedly, with Tanaka responding calmly and Matsuda's loud outbursts. She closed her eyes, searching through her memories to see if Tanaka had originally red hair or another. The elevator dinged, jolting her out of her thoughts.

"Everything has been prepared for your arrival, your mother personally made sure that the furniture and all the other such necessities is to your liking." Tanaka said, stopping in front of a door with a number nine in gold. He opened it and placed Kotone's luggage inside while out of the way in order for Kotone to take a step inside. She stood in front of the door, the genkan was small with slippers already placed out for her. She stayed out there, debating the ridiculous notion of saying she wanted to go back home even though she's already thousands of miles away. She probably could.

Kotone smirked at herself, stomach churning. _Go ahead; trouble everyone around you after they've already done everything to prepare this. Go back on your words. Let your father down after you gave him your word a week ago. Do it. It's only fair right? You get a say in it too, just—_

"Ojo-sama?" Kotone moved infinitesimally towards the sound. Burying her thoughts in the back of her mind quickly, she turned around and quickly bowed.

"Thank you very much!" She stayed in the position with her arms clamped next to her. "Thank you for accompanying me and for taking care of me all these years!" Her eyes stung, but she bit the inside of her cheek.

The elderly man's gaze softened and nodded when she looked up at him. Tanaka wrapped his arms around her in a grandfatherly way and gave her a reassuring squeeze. His beard scratched her forehead. "You're very welcome. And I'm happy to have accompanied you." He brought her to arms length, "Remember what your mother said." He said sternly, wiping her eyes with his gloved hands.

She nodded, slapping her cheeks. Kotone took a big breath in.

"Right."

"It's not until a little while and we'll be back in Italy in no time." Something in Kotone clicked and she looked up at him with an unreadable expression.

"Okay," She said quietly.

"Ojii-chan, we have to go." Matsuda called, a little ways off. He had given them time to say a fond farewell, but they were out of time even if it was really early in the morning and gosh darn it he was going to fall asleep on his feet. He pointed to his watch and his grandfather nodded.

"I'm sorry I am not able to help you, but it seems like I am needed back in Tokyo," he kissed her forehead, "best of luck to you, ojo-sama, and if you are in need of assistance or any sort of trouble, do not hesitate to call, alright?" She nodded.

"Don't let any of those immature, pigheaded boys get the best of you; you're much better than they are."

Kotone was on auto pilot now, laughing on instinct. Tanaka gave her a worried look but she gave him a reassuring smile and two thumbs up. She bowed at Matsuda who gave her a friendly salute and waved goodbye as the elevator doors closed. The brunette waited a good five minutes before putting her hand down and the smile left her face. She gazed back at the elevator, then at the apartment door.

Kotone walked inside and didn't look back.

o-o

**Namimori Shopping Center**

**Namimori, Japan:**

**Saturday, 12: 00 pm**

_Countdown_**: 1 day**

o-o

"Coming!" Kotone opened the door to her apartment to come face to face with a man with reddish brown hair. The man bowed, a smile played on his lips.

"Afternoon, Kotone-ojo-sama," she stared at him momentarily before slamming the door in his face. The man stayed frozen a couple of seconds before banging on the door.

"Wait, wait! Kotone-ojo-sama!" The door opened only by a small sliver, a dangerous gold eye glared at him.

"Please go away."

"Ah, come on, Kotone-ojo-sama, it's me," he pointed to himself, "Matsuda Ichiro, you know Tana—"

"I know who you are." Matsuda flinched back when the door swung open, almost hitting him. "Why are you here?"

He straightened up. "I have come to give you a tour of the wonderful town of Namimori!" His hand swept the floor she was staying at, sparkling in a manner she didn't know how. Kotone raised an eyebrow.

"Um, no thank you." She deadpanned, causing the man in front of her fall slightly.

"Eh, why not!"

Kotone wrapped her cardigan tighter around herself and shrugged. "I'll go look around later."

And before she could close the door again, Matsuda grabbed her arm and dragged her towards the stairs in a speed she didn't believe he had. Her bare feet slapped themselves down the cold ground unsteadily and when they were finally on leveled ground, she dug her heels into the floor.

"Ugh, Matsuda-san!"

They were in the lobby, making their way to the door before Kotone stopped them, even if it was only a matter of time.

"Excuse me!"

"Come on Kotone-ojo-sama! I promised—Ojii-chan that I'll—" He was so close to the door, his hand twitched for the handle. He looked back at the young girl, trying to wrench her arms out of his grip. Surprisingly, she was very strong for a small girl, well, compared to him.

"Does that involve _forcing_ me!"

"Most definitely!"

xXx

They were walking amongst the crowd, Matsuda pointing at certain things and explaining what they were. Kotone kept her arms crossed, fisting her hands in her cardigan. Matsuda had managed to get to the door and he almost succeeded in getting Kotone outside when he tripped and Kotone yanked her arm out of his grasp. After much negotiating, Kotone grabbed her shoes and they were off. Well, after she grabbed the first aid kit and tended to Matsuda's chin.

Someone almost bumped into her but she swerved out of the way. Kotone held her tongue, almost saying something in Italian. Shoot, she's still not used to talking in Japanese without someone initiating it first.

"You have to get over your social anxiety."

"Pardon?" She muttered through clenched teeth, avoiding yet another person.

"Hmm, maybe it's called Anthropophobia," Matsuda had his hands behind his head (she could see the huge bandage under his chin), exposing his side to an attack. So she elbowed his exposed ribs, hard. But he swerved, avoiding it.

"I'm not afraid of people."

"Sure, sure," He said absent-mindedly, taking out something from his pocket and pressed it on her head. "You forgot something, by the way."

"Hey!" Her line of sight was covered instantly and when she finally took off whatever it was that caused her momentary blindness, she glared up at the man. Then, she looked down at the soft object. "Ah, it's my hat, I was looking for this."

"You stand out way too much."

"How, exactly, may I ask?"

"Your cardigan is yellow, your hat is yellow, your shirt—actually everything about you is yellow! You stick out like a yellow sore thumb!"

"Sorry for coordinating my outfit…" She muttered, putting her hat on her head in irritation. It's not like she wants to stick out. It's just that her mother elected herself in charge of packing and all that was in Kotone's luggage now were clothes she didn't even know existed in her closest! She was jolted out of her thoughts when someone grabbed her arm. The brunette was about to flip the person over her shoulder when she noticed it was only Matsuda trying to drag her to god knows where.

"Let's get some crepes! Strawberry is your favorite right?"

Before she knew it, there was a warm _thing_ in her hand topped with excessive amounts of cream, sprinkles, syrup and, ugh, _everything_. She stared at it, conflicted between throwing up because it looks too sickeningly sweet or touched that Matsuda bought her something to eat. Both of them sat down on one of many benches that was littered around the Namimori Shopping Center. Matsuda popped the last bit of crepe into his mouth while Kotone still hasn't touched hers. She continued to stare at her food, the cream starting to melt.

After a moment, Matsuda asked, "Are you going to eat that?"

Kotone slid Matsuda a pointed look before handing it over to him, losing her appetite in general. "Do you not like strawberry?"

"It's fine," She said, wiping her fingers off before she rested her chin on her palm, watching people pass her.

"Gyahaha!" Kotone spotted a black sheep like child wearing a cow suit running past her. "Lambo-san wants to eat ice cream!"

"Lambo, wait for everyone else!" Another child ran after the one that zoomed past her, donning red Chinese clothes.

The brunette sighed, such innocent children.

Even if they're dressed weirdly.

"Matsuda-san,"

"Hm?" He had cream around his mouth and Kotone handed him a clean napkin.

"Why are you really here?"

He looked away, though he didn't really need to because the young mistress wasn't paying any attention to him anyways. "Just like I said, to give you a tour."

"Hmm," She buried her mouth into her hand, spotting a yellow bird perching itself on a light pole across the street.

"Midori tanabiku namimori …"

"Hahi, Kyoko-chan, look! It's that little birdie again!" Kotone's eyes slid to her right to see two girls across the street spot the same bird.

"Oh, that must be Hibari-san's pet bird, it's so cute!" Kotone looked up towards the bird again, only to realize that it had flown away.

Matsuda watched Kotone, pursing his lips. "Plus, you _still _don't get out much. You're going to end up a hermit the more you spend time indoors than out."

"You know, I remember you know." She said out of nowhere.

"Really?" He asked, amused.

"Right, you were trying to get me outside to play with those guys, I bit your arm, and then you dropped me." She said so without looking his way, stating it in a matter-of-fact tone.

"_You need to get some fresh air!"_

"_No, I don't wanna!"_

Matsuda laughed nervously. "So, I guess it's your fault then…"

"No, I remember biting you more than once but you kept carrying me out there, only when you saw Tanaka-san did you drop me." Matsuda winced, scratching the back of his head.

"_What are you doing?"_

"_Ojii-chan!"_

"Yeah…haha, sorry…about that," He placed both of his hands behind his head. "So, how're those boys anyway, do they still give you trouble?"

Kotone looked over a shoulder to give him a wry smile. "They're fine."

Matsuda nodded, ruffling Kotone's hat. "Good, 'cuz if they're still bothering you, I'll personally go to Italy myself and give those two brats a piece of my mind."

Matsuda made a point to punch his other hand, expecting her to laugh. He looked at her and notices that Kotone was staring at him with this odd look in her eyes. Then, she went back to staring at the people walking.

"You don't have to do that." She said quietly. He placed both his hands back behind his head.

"You're still not used to this, huh?"

Kotone smiled into her hand.

"Yeah."

xXx

"So, guess I'll you later then!" Matsuda saluted.

It was evening when they finally arrived back at Kotone's apartment and she never thought she could feel so tired after spending a day with only _one_ person.

"This is probably the last time I'll see you, isn't it."

Matsuda's face froze for what seemed like the umpteenth time today. He really shouldn't let his guard around this girl; everything that came out of her mouth was always a surprise.

His mouth was forced into a smile. "What ever gave you that idea?"

Kotone ignored the question and continued as if she wasn't interrupted. "This will be the last time I see anybody for a while, right?"

Kotone had a rather smug appearance about her, probably from pinpointing the truth of the whole matter. Her arms were crossed across her chest again. She's been in the very same position throughout the whole day and Matsuda shrugged it off as her way of being indifferent towards everything or maybe arrogant but Kotone never really acted in such a way. He tilted his head at that, then up at her. He could see the quiet panic in her eyes. Matsuda raised his hand up, a brotherly urge to hug her because wow, the circumstances she's in hits him in the face like a cold slap but settles it on top of her hat covered head and mussed around with it.

He gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry. And yeah, it'll be a while."

Kotone nodded, not looking up. "Did Tanaka-san put you up to this?"

"Yeah," And Matsuda quickly added, his hand making frantic gestures. "AH, but it was fun today! And I wanted to hang out with you cause it had been so long since I've seen you and—"

"Figures," The corners of her mouth turned up ruefully. Kotone bowed slowly before straightening up. She held her hand out. "Thanks for hanging out with me, especially before the big day tomorrow."

Matsuda smiled, nodding. He took the hand and gave a firm hand shake. "No problem!"

She waved good bye to the man and closed the apartment door with a sort of sluggishness. Kotone slid down with her back against the door and places her hands in her lap, looking up at the ceiling.

All she had to do now was deal with tomorrow.

* * *

><p>AN: Congratulations for reading this far! And I say this because this is a long read, literally. So, what do you think of my story so far? Does it catch your interest? Does it make you want to read more? I really hope so! Anyways, I just wanted to say thanks for reading up until now, I appreciate it! And if you review (hint hint wink wink) you wouldn't believe how happy that would make me! Tell me what you think so far and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask! I also wanted to ask, is the length of the chapter too long by any chance? I just wanted to know so that I won't bore you with so much to read.

Commentary: Wow, I used a _lot_ of adverbs now didn't I?


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